Caution and apology over Nazi cartoon

5:00am Saturday 23rd February 2013 in News

Caution and apology over Nazi cartoon Caution and apology over Nazi cartoon

A CARTOONIST has been cautioned by police after publishing images of a councillor either naked or wearing a Nazi uniform.

Rod England, 67, was interviewed by police and removed the offending images from his website following a complaint made by Cllr Alan O’Sullivan.

It follows a long-running row over who should represent Lymington on Hampshire County Council.

Cllr O’Sullivan is a member of New Milton Town Council and a governor of the town’s junior school. However, he has been chosen by New Forest West Conservative Association (NF-WCA) to contest the Lymington seat at the forthcoming county council elections.

The move angered Lymington Tories, who wanted someone from the town selected. Lady Georgina Craufurd, chairman of the Lymington branch of the NFWCA, has been suspended from the party for criticising the way the issue was handled.

Mr England said one of the Lymington Tories told him the NFWCA were “behaving like Nazis”, which inspired him to draw the two cartoons.

But police called at his Barton-on-Sea home and issued him with a caution for causing harassment, alarm or distress.

Comments(8)

Lionel P says...
6:06am Sat 23 Feb 13

A cartoon? Published where? Free speech really is dead if you can't lampoon a political adversary.

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userds5050 says...
9:42am Sat 23 Feb 13

Lionel P wrote:
A cartoon? Published where? Free speech really is dead if you can't lampoon a political adversary.
We do have defamation laws in this country as well? Also read the story. They were on his website. If he felt as strongly about free speech as you he could have left them on there and had his day in court.

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userds5050 says...
9:48am Sat 23 Feb 13

Also they must have been pretty bad for the police to get involved. More than a little lampooning I suspect.

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Inform Al says...
10:25am Sat 23 Feb 13

Unfortunately the way the Tories have been acting nationally the comments were probably not far off the mark, shame the Echo will never have the spherical objects necessary to print the cartoons.

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rickey says...
10:49am Sat 23 Feb 13

Unfortunately free speech died long ago, particularly when we can be prosecuted for causing harassment, alarm or distress. There is a British tradition of using cartoons to lampoon politicians and they don't have to be pretty bad for the Police to get involved now as they see it as their new mission in life. I believe that deformation or libel is now basically a civil offence so really it is nothing to do with the Police but a bit of alarm or distress and they are on the job.

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cantthinkofone says...
11:12am Sat 23 Feb 13

Worrying precedent.

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userds5050 says...
11:29am Sat 23 Feb 13

Wonder if he was Gerald Scarfe would he have got a police caution.

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DiscoPig (dj) says...
4:32pm Thu 28 Feb 13

Inform Al wrote:
Unfortunately the way the Tories have been acting nationally the comments were probably not far off the mark, shame the Echo will never have the spherical objects necessary to print the cartoons.
He should have left them on his site,had the day in court then made another cartoon with the copper in a gestapo outfit!!!

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